How old is my dog? Your author recently received an email from a
young man saying he couldn’t afford to buy a hunting dog so he adopted a German
shorthair pointer from a shelter. The
shelter told him they thought it was about one year old but not sure. His email asked if I could give him a few
tips on determining his new dog’s age.
We’ve all heard the formula that one human
year equals seven dog years. Dogs simply
age much faster than humans. That
formula is an average. Small dogs are known to live longer than large
dogs. Small dogs tend to mature earlier
and more quickly and large dogs mature more quickly when they’re older. We have German shorthairs and they are known
to live a long and healthy life; frequently reaching ages of 14 to 15. We’ve had a Great Dane that was ancient at
ten.
There are a few clues that will help a dog
owner determine the general age of a dog.
If your dog’s eyes have a bluish cloud, he’s at least half way through
his life expectancy. Our older dog is
nine and the bluish cloud is developing.
Graying hair around the muzzle is also a tell-tale sign of age. Our older dog developed gray muzzle hair
around the age of seven.
Your dog not running as fast as you think
he should is a sign of age. Younger bird
dogs run like the wind…older dogs save their energy. After running and resting, an older dog might
be stiff and take longer to get up after a rest. No different than humans, we all tire more
quickly as we get older.
If you want to spend the extra money, a
veterinarian can take x-rays and look at the bones and organs of a dog for
clues about the dog’s age. If you asked
a veterinarian to assist you with determining the age of your dog, the first
thing he’ll probably do is look at the teeth.
Teeth tell a story. Here’s a
guideline for determining age by the teeth.
A puppy usually has a full mouth of baby
teeth by eight weeks. By seven months,
all the pup’s permanent teeth have developed and are visible and nice and
white. Teeth at the one to two year age
are a little bit duller than puppy teeth and rear teeth may begin to
yellow. At the three to five year
bracket, all teeth have some tartar build-up and need to be cleaned. Wear may also begin to show. At the five to ten year bracket, all teeth show
wear, yellowing, tartar build-up and perhaps tooth or gum disease. For ten to fifteen year old dogs, tooth
disease is common, some teeth may be missing and all teeth show signs of wear.
If you ever have your eyes on a shelter
dog with no papers, the above tips should help you determine the dog’s age.
Paul Fuller is host of the Bird Dogs Afield TV program. Paul’s website is www.birddogsafield.com.
